The message
by Enterprise1701-d
Summary: My first attempt at a JQ fanfic. A Japanese female ninja is sent on an important mission to the Quests


**The message**

A Jonny Quest fanfiction by Enterprise1701_d

The characters of Jonny Quest, Benton Quest, Race Bannon, Jessie Bannon, Hadji Singh and Bandit are property of Hanna Barbera. I don't own them, and I am not making any money of this. Please don't sue!

The characters of Nariko Mitsu and her family are mine. Anyone want to use them, drop me a line. 

The lab was in a stark twilight when the early sunrays penetrated its windows. The man rubbed his forehead, his eyes never leaving the computer screen in front of him.

"Close," the Japanese man whispered. "So close…"

Suddenly, his eyes went wide, and he typed a couple of lines of code at a ferocious pace. The computer beeped, and started working while the man lifted his head for the first time in hours. Dark rings were visible under his eyes, and his entire posture radiated pure exhaustion as he stretched himself, relaxing slightly while the computer ran through the series of modifications.

His eyes snapped open when the computer beeped the completion of its tasks, and the man bolted immediately upright, eyes locked on the computer screen. The man's posture changed, from pure exhaustion to utter terror. 

"What have I done?" the man whispered, shocked. "This… this may not happen. I… I need to hide this." The man dove to a nearby cabinet, and grabbed a crystal of some sort. With one hand, he popped it into a slot while the other hands tapped a copy-code into the terminal. Immediately, the screen went blank. The man nodded in satisfaction, typed in a second string of code, and watched as a progress bar became visible on the screen.

While waiting impatiently for the bar to reach one hundred percent, the man grabbed a couple of empty sheets of papers, and started writing. By the time the computer had finished, the man had already sealed the pages into an envelope. The man shut off the terminal, grabbed the crystal, and raced out the door.

Ten minutes later, an indistinct Japanese car came to a screeching halt in front of a simple wooden house, located at the edge of a forest. The man jumped out of the car, and raced to the front door of the house. He banged a couple of times in his unique fashion, and spent twenty-five anxious seconds staring around, like prey being hunted. 

Finally, the door was opened by a girl who appeared to be sixteen or seventeen. "I bring urgent tidings," the man told the girl that opened, who immediately bowed, and let him in. After removing his shoes, he followed the girl to the living room, nothing more than a stark room with green matting on the floor, and a simple stove at one end. The room doubled for bedroom, but the man didn't notice the sleeping mats that were still out.

"Yoshi-san brings urgent tidings, papa-sensei," the girl said, bowing to the man who was already in the room, slowly eating a cup of rice. Immediately, the man in the room looked up, and stared at the newcomer in his house.

"What can I do for my bigger brother?" the man asked, noting how haggard and tired his brother looked. "What is so important that you barge into the house I share with my daughter at…" he threw a look out the window, and noted the position of the sun. "…five forty-five in the morning?" he finished the question.

The man identified as Yoshi dropped to his knees to the left of his brother, the girl having already retaken her seat at his right side. He put a crystal on the mat in front of his brother.

"Please, brother. Guard this with your life… the world depends on it. No-one is safe if this is out there," Yoshi asked. He extended the envelope. "If something were to happen to me, please open this envelope, and follow its instructions. This crystal may not fall into the wrong hands."

The man took the crystal, and slowly looked it over. "What is so important that you can not destroy it?" he asked, gazing into the clearly-transparent crystalline structure.

"I…" Yoshi stopped, and took a breath. "It is… a mistake," he finally said. "I was looking for a perfect encryption algorithm. Instead, I found…_that_."

"What is it, Brother?" the man, still as calm as ever.

"It is the encryption I was looking for," Yoshi said. "But, on closer inspection, I found an application for it that should never be used. I found that…with simple changes… this algorithm not only encrypts, but also _decrypts_."

"The unbreakable algorithm that decrypts?" the girl asked. "Does that mean, Yoshi-san, that… it decrypts…"

Yoshi nodded. "No encryption is safe," he whispered quietly. He tuned back to his brother, who was still staring at the crystal. "There was so much work in it, and the potential for good is great. That is why I can not bring myself to destroy it completely. That is the only copy left. I erased the copies on my mainframe. There is only one person besides you I would trust with this… however, he lives in the Unites States, and I will not risk compromise by transmitting it over communications channels that may be monitored."

"A wise precaution," the man nodded. He stood up, his brother and daughter following his lead. He bowed to his brother. "I, Shuriko Mitsu, vow on my honor as ninja-master that I will guard this crystal and its contents with my life, and will follow the instructions in the envelope should anything happen to you."

"That is all I ask," Yoshi said, returning the bow. "I, Yoshi Mitsu, thank you."

Shuriko and his daughter lead Yoshi to the door, and five minutes later, the couple finished their breakfast. 

"Now you see why science is also dangerous, Nariko, my daughter," Shuriko said after they had both finished the simple breakfast. "But, all of this is water under the bridge. Come, we will do some exercises. We must keep our bodies in excellent shape if we are to fulfill this mission." 

For the next week, Shuriko and Nariko lived their lives the way they had always lived it. Since Nariko now had Christmas break, father and daughter were preparing to go on their bi-annual camping trip. Of course, their method of camping involved bows, arrows, and catching food to live on as they went. Nariko loved camping with her father. 

Nariko filled her 'Travel Pack', as Yoshi had called it when he had presented the packs to the duo. Such a pack was the standard size travel backpack, yet it contained all the elementary weapons of a ninja warrior: the shuriken, the ninja-throwing stars, the nunchunks, the fighting chain with two lead handles, the sword, and knives in various sizes. Apart from being inconspicuous, the packs also served another purpose. Yoshi had designed the weapons in it himself… they were made of a special composite material, making them just as strong as steel weapons, yet undetectable by metal detectors. 

Nariko took the nicely folded camouflage uniform, and tucked it into the pack. She didn't betray the inwards joy she felt… she always loved running around in the uniform, knowing very well that she was practically like a shadow, and the amount of awe and fear it inspired in normal people. Of course, Nariko mused, she didn't get to use it often for that very reason. 

There was a sharp knocking at the front door, and Nariko looked confused at the front door. She hurriedly threw the top flap of the travel pack shut, and went to open on their visitor. There were two men outside, both dressed in the uniform of the Japanese police.

"May we speak to Master Shuriko?" the first police officer asked, bowing respectfully.

"Of course," Nariko replied, bowing in greeting and respect while stepping aside to let the men enter. She showed them to the living room, where she bowed once more, and said, "My father will be with you as soon as possible. Please apologize us for the inconvenience."

The two men bowed in answer, and Nariko left the room. "Papa-sensei, two police officers are here to see you," she said as she entered his bedroom. 

"Extend our apologies for the delay, and I will be there shortly," Shuriko said, throwing the flap of his pack shut. Nariko bowed, and left the room.

"My father extends his apologies for the delay. He shall be with you shortly. May I bring you something?" Nariko asked respectfully as she bowed to the police officers. 

"We'll be fine," one of the officers snapped, and Nariko bowed again as she left the room. 

She saw her father approach. With a single glance between them, her father knew that trouble was on the way. Nariko knew better then to leave, so she stayed neared the door. Close enough to help, if the need arose. She closed her eyes, and allowed her ears to grow more sensitive. She picked up the quiet conversation on the other side of the door. Soon, that quiet conversation halted… before picking up again.

Nariko's body tensed when the conversation changed in intensity. Even though she could not understand her father's words, his voice still transmitted something… something that wasn't right. Nariko knew her father's voice inside and out, and this was definitely a tensed way of speaking. She took a sharp breath when one of the officers started shouting. Her father's reply was terse, immediately after which she heard signs of fighting. 

Scowling, Nariko bolted for the door, threw it open, and surveyed the scene. One officers scrambled to his legs from where he had obviously been thrown, a readied gun in his right hand, pointed straight at Shuriko. The second officer also had his gun out. Nariko's father stood closer to #2, and both father and daughter knew that Shuriko was capable of taking that gun from him before it went off. #1 was on the other side of the room, and _his_ gun was harder to disarm.

However, Nariko's sudden entry caused both men to falter in their concentration for a moment. It was only a moment, but it was enough. Nariko went for the man closest to her, which was #2, while Shuriko turned, darted sideways nimbly, and went after #1.

Nariko reached number two the moment he had his gun trained on her. She grabbed his wrist, wrested it towards the ceiling, and kicked him hard between his legs. The man's eyes crossed, and he sunk to his knees. She drew her hand back to deliver a knock-out punch to his face. 

"Nariko!" her father yelled, and Nariko's instincts kicked in. She rolled to her side, making sure to keep her reach on man number two, while at the same time turning so she could look in the direction her back had been facing.

She saw #1's gun trained on her. Immediately, her brain kicked into overdrive, her instincts scrambling to get her same place safe. She rolled again, dropping flat on the floor behind #2, who was still sitting on his knees on the floor, holding his hurting parts. Nariko heard gunshots, a grunt of pain from her father, followed by a dull scream from #1, followed by a dry _snap_ of breaking bone. A body fell to the ground. 

Nariko carefully looked up behind the back of #2, saw that #1 was out on the floor, and grabbed #2 around the neck in a choke-hold. Pressing on the major arteries, the man fell unconscious to the floor within ten seconds, without much of a struggle. He was probably glad not to feel the devastating pain in his nether regions anymore.

"Papa-sensei?" Nariko asked when she got up. Her voice shrieked in concern when she saw him grow pale, and sweat formed on his forehead. He grabbed his side. 

"He got me," Shuriko grunted. Nariko saw how the man was lying, noted the position of the gun, and her brain made the connections. _He was going to shoot through his companion to get at me,_ she realized. _Papa-sensei must have shielded me with his body…_

She raced to her father's side, and put his left arm over her shoulders so she could support him. "He got me good," Shuriko grunted, pushing himself upright. Nariko released her hold on his arm, and he calmly pulled it back. Looking at the knocked-out body of man #2, he asked, "Lethal?"

Nariko shook her head. "Non-lethal," she whispered. "I…I have never…"

"I understand," Shuriko replied, walking over with painful paces to the body on his floor. #2 was lying on his stomach, face turned sideways, in a totally out-cold manner. "I should kill him," Shuriko grunted. "But first, more important matters." He walked to the hallway, grabbed the phone, and dialed a number. No answer came obviously, as the man threw the hook shut fifteen seconds later, and dialed a second number. Again, no response came.

He dialed a third number, and Nariko could hear him explaining some things to the police officer. She remained in the living room, staring at the one corpse and one out-cold man. The man out cold started to stir. Deftly, she reached over and punched him out again. She heard her father enter the room.

"The police…will come. Sergeant Yamada will…take care of things," he wheezed, and Nariko saw that her father wasn't as good as he had pretended to be. She shot up, and supported him, this time meeting no resistance as she eased him to the ground. "Ambulance… under way," he whispered. "Take…envelope. Leave house… will say you on camping trip." He swallowed hard. "I'll say you were already away. Take your pack, and the envelope. Complete the mission… I don't think…I will be able to."

Nariko stared at him, her love for her father fighting a bloody conflict with her honor as ninja to do as her master asked. Finally, she got up, and raced to her bedroom. She returned with her travel pack thrown over her shoulders, and the envelope and the crystal being stuffed in her jeans pocket.

"Are you sure you will be alright, papa-sensei?" she asked, kneeling next to him. "I don't like leaving you like this."

Her father grunted, and perched himself closer to her. "You…are my daughter," he wheezed, really not sounding good. "I vowed… on my honor…to complete the orders put in that envelope. Come to the hospital once you've done them. It is now your mission."

Nariko swallowed. This was her first mission. Her father worked for the government, doing various intelligence-gathering missions, and she had accompanied him on about three of those missions. This was her first solo-mission. Nariko swallowed again, stood up, and nodded. "I will complete the mission, papa-sensei. I vow," she swore, bowing deep to the man. He gave a simple nod of his head, not really able to do much more, and Nariko bolted out of the back door, hearing the front door being knocked open by the first arrivals. 

Nariko ran like the wind through the forest that adjourned the house directly, knowing that, the moment she had taken ten steps, she was invisible in the green that was the forest. The female ninja knew exactly where she was going: a clearing about one kilometer away from the house. It was perfect for the first part of her mission. 

Arriving there soon, Nariko dropped against a tree on the edge of the clearing, keeping herself hiding under the canopy, while allowing light in to read at the same time.

_If you read this message, something has happened to me. Either I am kidnapped, or worse. In any case, the crystal is no longer safe with you. They will come after it. If they know of me, they will also know of you, my brother. _

_Thus, I must ask something of great importance. Take the crystal to the one person I trust to keep this safe… or to destroy it. I would ask you to do it, but I can not ask you to put your life, or the life of Nariko, at risk for the rest of your lives. _

_Please, take the crystal to the United States, to a place called 'Rockport', in Maine. There you will find a large place called the Quest Compound. It is the home of a renowned scientist called Benton Quest. Please, take the crystal and the accompanying note to Dr. Quest. _

_Thank you,_

_Your brother,_

_Yoshi Mitsu. _

Nariko sat there, staring at the note, for close to ten minutes. _To America?_ Her mind asked. _Oh, what do I do now? I…I…I'm only sixteen! I can't do this! And you…you're hurt! I can't leave you! Not like this!_

Her mind spinning, Nariko finally straightened out. "No," she said out loud. "I vowed to do this. So, I will do this. But first… first I must go to the hospital."

She snuck back towards the house, to find its grounds nearly covered by police cars. Knowing enough, Nariko jogged parallel to the road, while keeping herself hiding among the trees. She knew exactly where she was going. Half an hour later, Nariko entered the only city nearby to have a big enough hospital to handle the kind of injuries her father had sustained. If he wasn't here, Nariko would have to look for him… a process which took time. Time she knew was very valuable. Everybody could be after them. 

"Excuse me, but where is Shuriko Mitsu's room?" Nariko asked politely at the nurse behind the desk. The nurse smiled back at her. Nariko's smile was forced. She felt very worried, and very anxious. Concern for her father battled for dominance with the feeling of dread, and her ninja-teachings. She shouldn't be here. It allowed her enemies to gain foothold of her. But, somehow, she couldn't leave without telling her father where she was going.

"I am sorry for the delay," the nurse said politely. "He is in the operating room. Are you related?"

"I'm his daughter," Nariko replied without thinking, immediately feeling as if she could slap herself. The nurse smiled, however, and gave her a room number. It was a single room…paid for by the Japanese government. Nariko quietly made it up to the room, and sunk into a chair.

"I thought you might show up," a masculine voice said quietly, causing the girl to jump up into a combat stance. She immediately relaxed when she recognized her father's liaison with the Japanese government. 

"Sagara-sama," the girl said respectfully, bowing deep. "You honor us."

"The honor's mine," the man replied levelly. "Now, what happened?"

Nariko briefly went over her options. She really could use her father's contacts in getting to the States… there were all sorts of things to be taken care of: a flight, passports, transportation…But that would mean telling Sagara all she knew. She briefly wondered if he would consider helping her without her telling him everything, and dismissed the idea just as quickly. Sagara would find out sooner or later anyway.

"Sagara-sama, I need your help," Nariko said, with a formal bow. The man raised an eyebrow in curiosity, yet remained silent. Taking this as a good sign, Nariko continued. "I need to go to the United States, and deliver a package to a contact there… I will need a car once I arrive to meet the contact."

Sagara looked the sixteen-year-old over for a few moments. "Can you tell me what package this is you're delivering? Does it have something to do with your father's injuries?"

"I have sworn an oath of secrecy, Sagara-sama. Please understand. I can not disclose anything as long as I haven't finished my mission. And even then, I may never be allowed to say anything."

Sagara sighed. "Just like your father," the man said. "Integrity beyond belief." He looked up at her. "That's why we trust him… and that's why I am going to give you the same trust. I would not have denied such a request from your father, so I will not deny it to you. Go and pack, Nariko-san. I will have everything arranged by the time you return."

She saw him reach for the phone, and immediately, she bowed. "I thank you, Sagara-sama." He waved at her, and shot her a nod as he started trading words with someone over the phone. Nariko made her way out of the hospital. Something her father had kept telling her since she was four years old popped back into her mind. _When on a mission, do not take anything at face value. Assume the worst, and always have multiple alternative routes available._

Nariko picked a piece of paper out of her travel pack, and scribbled a few lines on it. After that, she put the note in an envelope, addressed it to her father, marked it 'strictly confidential', and sealed it before dropping it into a mailbox. It assured her that no one but her father would read the contents of the envelope. Taking a couple of deep breaths to steady her concern for her father, and to settle the adrenalin over the whole situation that raced through her system, she started walking to the nearest supermarket. She might need supplies. 

Knowing better than to buy foods, since they wouldn't be allowed into the States anyway, she bought a couple of candy bars and a bag of potato chips. There was plenty of energy in candy bars… and the chips were simply because she felt like chips. She would need her energy. Nariko was assured that someone would come after her eventually, and she was preparing her body for lengthy periods of activity. 

She returned to the hospital room after twenty minutes in the city. Nariko was now confident that, should something happen, she was capable of taking alternative routes to her destination. They would neither be as comfortable or as quick as Sagara's options, of course, but they would suffice in case of trouble.

"That was quick," Sagara remarked with a smile. "I have arranged a flight to New York and a rental car once you are there. A car will pick you up downstairs to take you to the airport."

"Once again, I thank you, Sagara-sama. I am in your debt," Nariko replied honestly. "I hope that, one day, I will get the chance to repay you."

"I'm sure you will," Sagara replied with an easy smile. "Now, let me call the car so the driver can come and pick you up."

"Thank you, Sagara-sama," Nariko answered. Silence descended in the room, and she started to fidget quietly. "Sagara-sama… has there… has there been news of my father?"

Sagara sighed, and shook his head. "The wound wasn't deep, but it caught a major artery. Last I heard, he was no longer in mortal danger. He should be fine, but will be required to keep at least a week of total bed rest."

Nariko let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding. Color started to return to her face. Her father would be alright! Smiling slightly, she allowed at least that part of her mind to relax. Of course, between _wanting_ it to relax, and it actually relaxing was a big difference. 

After nearly ten minutes in silence, the phone in the room started ringing, and Sagara answered. He nodded, and hung up. "Your car's here, Nariko-san." He got up along with her. "Return safe," Sagara wished her as he bowed.

"Thank you. I will," Nariko answered respectfully. "Thank you again, Sagara-sama." With those words, she left the room, going downstairs… where the car waited that would take her from the land of birth, to a mission that would take her halfway around the world.

Nariko made a final check of the passport and the tickets that were in a brown envelope that was in the car. After checking, she opened her final chocolate candy bar, and made quick work of it before preparing to hand over her travel bag at the check-in. She took one small knife and attached it to her ankle. After that, she hid three shuriken on her person before checking in. Handing in her travel bag, she walked without carry-on luggage to the inner cloister of the airport, where she waited patiently for her flight to New York to be announced. 

Closing her eyes, the young woman's mind drifted into a shallow meditation trance, conserving her energy and her mind for the trouble she _knew_ would come. While her mind and body relaxed, her senses drifted out. Her eyes were closed, but her ears picked up the noise of the other travelers, and Nariko's instincts screened the sounds carefully.

Finally, her flight was announced, and Nariko opened her eyes and stood up without appearing hasty. She strode to the gate just like any other tourist would; her white t-shirt, blue jeans, and white sneakers indicating nothing of the fact that she was poised to fight. 

Nariko sighed as she sunk into her seat. Her favorite weapons, the sword and the nunchunks, were in her travel bag. Too cumbersome to hide on herself, so she had felt no other choice but to leave them in the large backpack. She felt more than comfortable dealing with the kozuko-knife or with the shuriken throwing-stars, however. A ninja should be prepared for anything, and she knew that she could do so.

As soon as the plane had lifted into the air, she allowed herself to drift into a half-sleep state, allowing her body and mind to gain some rest, while keeping herself alert enough to fend off attacks, should one arise. Somehow, somewhere, she drifted off into a peaceful slumber, her mind sinking deeper into sleep. She jarred awake when the plane touched down in Los Angeles.

She stared out the window. _I slept the entire trip?_ she shouted to herself, trying to hide the appalling look on her face. _I am NOT weak! I can NOT allow this!_ she snarled to herself, and sat up straight in her seat. Appearing to read a magazine, her senses were cast wide-out. She was determined not to let surprise get the better of her anymore. Finally, the plane took off for its final leg to New York, where she disembarked.

After the necessary passport checks and baggage claims, Nariko checked the reservation for a rental car that Sagara had put into the envelope. After double-checking, she looked around.

"Looks like papa-sensei's lessons in roman writing pays off," she said at the sight of not a single kanji-sign.

She decoded the different signs, and finally found the right car rental place, and picked up the keys for the car. She gave a driver's license and a credit card that had been given to her, and she got the car keys. 

She exited to the car parking lot when night was already falling. She briefly debated starting right now and finding a place to wait for daybreak. The importance of the crystal in the travel pouch made itself known once again, and Nariko jumped behind the wheel.

"Okay. First things first. I need a map of the United States, and get my bearings," Nariko whispered out loud to herself. She drove off, and thought about how to get one. When she saw a gas station, she pulled over. Realizing she had no money except for the credit card, Nariko bit off a curse. "Okay. So how I get to Maine?" she grunted. "I know it's North of here. So how do I get there?"

Taking her chances, Nariko got out of the car, and walked to the attendant. Smiling nicely at him, she asked in her best English, "Excuse me, but… it seems I have a problem."

The attendant looked up from a book. Nariko recognized trapezoids and parallelograms, and realized it was a schoolbook of some kind. The moment his eyes locked with hers, his annoyed scowl made way for a gentle smile. "Shoot," he said.

Nariko blinked. "Excuse me?" she asked. 

"Oh. Right. Sorry. Americanism," he apologized. "I meant 'ask away'."

Nariko smiled. "I need to go to Maine, to a place named Rockport, and I wondered if you could tell me what route to take."

The attendant fumbled around in the drawer, and produced a street plan of the United States. "Let's see…" he said, fumbling around with the map, managing to open it so that they could both look at it. "Take route 25A east/9, then merge on I-678 North. Then take the I-95 North exit towards New England, and merge onto I-95. From there on…" It took close to fifteen minutes to get the entire route planned out, and by the time they were done, Nariko's head was swimming. Seeing her distress, the boy folded the map, and passed it under the bulletproof glass. 

"Here. I think you can use this," he said on a friendly tone.

"I only have a credit card," she apologized. 

He shook it off. "See it as the start of a friendship. Please, take it. There's plenty where that came from."

Nariko accepted the map, and eyed the boy wonderingly. She then bowed. "Thank you for your kindness. I hope to be able to repay you someday."

The boy smiled. "No problem. Glad to do it."

"Thank you again," she said, getting into her car, and smiling at him as she keyed the engine and drove off. 

Fifteen minutes later, Nariko was getting along nicely, the map she had gotten open on the passenger seat. Her fingers tapped on the steering wheel on the rhythm of some rock music coming from the radio. She didn't know the group, nor could she understand the lyrics… her English was good, but nowhere near perfect. The memory of how she had stumbled with the gas station attendant made her frown. She disliked failing so openly in a task set to her. 

Suddenly, lights flashed behind her. Nariko's attention was drawn immediately to the rearview mirror, immediately after followed by a car hitting her in the flank. Nariko's instincts took over, and she managed to keep the car on the road. She took a breath to force her body to stop producing adrenaline. She couldn't allow her mind to become one-tracked now. She turned the steering wheel, and hit the car next to her. At the same time she was stabilizing the car, her mind started working on a way out of this. She needed to escape… somehow.

The car that had been driving to her side accelerated, and now Nariko had to divide her attention between the car in front, and the car behind her. The car behind her hit her rear. The car shot forward, and she barely managed to avoid plummeting into the car in front of her. Forcing back her rising panic, Nariko turned the steering wheel, and flung the car off an exit ramp. The driver in front thumped on his brakes. The one behind her also jerked the wheel, but he didn't quite make it. 

Nariko was grunting in strain as she pressed in turn the accelerator and the brakes, trying to keep the car on the curvy exit ramp. Finally, she got control, and pulled the car to a stop in a nearby alley. She shut down the light and lifted her foot of the brakes. She let the engine running. She took cleansing breaths to ease her body out of 'panic mode', her breath and heartbeat returning to normal and the though-hindering adrenaline was released from her system.

She saw three black cars race past. Nariko's eyes went open wide. _More of them? How many more of them are there? _Her mind screamed. Waiting twenty seconds to make sure they were gone, Nariko pulled the car out of the alley, and backpedaled to the interstate. She floored the car the moment she had clear interstate in front of her. She prayed to her ancestors that the police wouldn't hinder her. She could let anyone know what she was doing… not until she delivered the message to Dr. Benton Quest. Subconsciously, she fingered the small pouch that hung from a string around her neck, contained the precious crystal the note.

The car Sagara had rented for her was a big Buick, not exactly the best car to do high-speed maneuvering with, and Nariko was seriously beginning to wonder whether or not she should have gone for a sports model car. Surely, the credit card Sagara had given her could have paid for a nice BMW, a Jaguar, or something similar. Nariko's eyes kept going to the rearview mirror. The Interstate was dark as Hell, and Nariko hated not being able to see what lay behind her. 

After a couple of minutes, she started to relax. She turned the radio to a station that broadcasted classical music, and Nariko allowed her mind and body to relax on the soothing tones. 

This time, the attack came out of nowhere. One car shot past her, and pulled across her. Nariko jerked the wheel and pressed the brakes to forcefully avoid a collision. At the same time, a second car hit her in the rear. The Buick spun out of control, and stopped wrong-way on the Interstate. The first two cars had blocked her forwards and backwards routes. A third car screeched to a halt at her side. Out of each car, four men stepped, looking dangerously at her. 

Nariko gulped. _I can take three or four… but not TWELVE! _She detached the seatbelt, threw open the door to hit one man in the nose, breaking it. She leaped from the car, and, snarling like an enraged tigress, planting both her hands in a second man's gut. She didn't feel angry… the snarl was both a way to exercise her breathing control and throw the men off-guard. Two men were down… one clutching a broken nose, and the second in a fetal position, whimpering over his stomach.

Nariko landed in a combat-stance in the middle of the ten remaining men. One man, obviously the leader, smiled at her. He then proceeded to draw a knife. Nariko's eyes went wide open when she saw the others do the same. She composed herself, and her eyes squinted dangerously. Her hand reached to her calf, and drew the composite-knife. 

"Get her. We need that crystal," the leader said to his men, who started circling the girl like a pack of hungry wolves. Nariko forced herself to remain calm, allow her mind and body to operate at maximum capacity. Her eyes went from left to right, focusing on the men she could see without turning her head. Her keen ears picked up the shuffling of feet when they were out of her sight. She blinked, her eyes focusing on the leader. 

"You are a coward," she stated in flat, emotionless English. "You dare not take on a girl by yourself. You need a dozen lackeys to do it for you." She spat on the ground in a sign of disgust. "You are not worthy of being my opponent."

The men stopped, staring at their leader. The man's face twisted in anger, his fists clenched at his sides. It was obvious he was steaming. Nariko took advantage of the lapse in concentration. Grabbing the shuriken in her left hand, she launched the three composite stars as if she were a tornado. Three men fell without a scream, the stars hitting their 'kill' mark, the only place on the human body they could kill instantly: the eye. 

Nariko didn't have time to debate her first kill. Her right hand still held the knife, and she engaged the man closest to her, managing a stab to his stomach, before doubling up, grabbing the knife in a reversed grip, and stabbing a man who had launched himself at her back. She withdrew the knife, and heard two thumps as the men hit the ground.

Nariko fought like a lioness, unfortunately, the men were now well-warned of her skills. The first ones had fallen to surprise. Nariko found that her innocent teenaged-girl appearance no longer had any effects. These men were good, and overwhelmed her soon after, but not before she managed to stab one more man and breaking two arms and a leg before being taken down.

Nariko felt them kick her, rather than bend down and stab her. The world turned dark soon after, as steel-tipped shoes continued to hit and kick her. 

Nariko didn't know how long she was out before cranking open one eye… the only eye she _could_ crank open, for that matter. She gritted her teeth against the pain she felt her body flood, and pushed herself to hands and knees. There was a nasty cut on her right side, probably where one of the knives had hit her before she had gone down. She examined herself using her hands, and came to the conclusion that she suffered no broken bones. Maybe a couple of sprains, but no breaks. 

A cry of pain escaped her lips before she could contain it when she wrestled herself to her legs. The cars were gone. Hers was still there, now parked ion the right direction. She was close to it, and had apparently been left in a position as if she had been the victim of a violent mugging. The though sent her scrambling for the pouch around her neck. 

It was gone. Her t-shirt had been cut open, and the pouch removed. She sunk into the car's plush seat, and cried. 

"What do I do now?" she asked herself, sobbing. "I've been beaten, the message stolen, my mission a failure… I can't come home now! I'd shame my father, my uncle, my ancestors… I'm a failure…"

After nearly ten minutes of sobbing, she wiped her nose, and grunted at the pain of the cut on her right side. "No… No, first I must complete the mission. _Then_ I can think about home. Right now, I am alone… a ninja without family or honor." 

She was glad the crooks had made it look so real… the keys were still in the ignition. _They probably thought I wouldn't regain consciousness before the police found me,_ she realized. Thinking about the numerous bruises she had found on her body, the huge lump at the back of her head, and the large cut on her side. _Or not wake up at all,_ she concluded. _I was very lucky… papa-sensei taught me resilience. I can take a beating, and still crawl up._ The girl silently thanked her father for the hard lessons over her young life while shifting the car into drive, and applying force to the gas pedal. She winced at the pain in her right leg as she did so. She thought her right ankle was probably sprained. 

The pain was bearable once she had gotten the car to a constant 60 miles an hour. _Where will I go?_ She asked herself silently. _I have no idea where the crystal is, who took it, or how to get it back…_ she looked at the map, still on the passenger seat. _The Quests, _she thought. _Dr. Quest is…was… a friend of my uncle. He could help me. I only hope he won't tell my father… I must first rectify the dishonor before I can face him._

Darkness was descending over the Quest Compound in Maine, night coming early at this time of the year. In the living room, Benton Quest sat in his comfortable chair, reading a newspaper while Race followed the world news on TV and Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji were reading. Dr. Quest looked up from his paper when the bell rang, indicating that someone was at the main gate. 

"IRIS? Who is it?" Benton asked the computer. 

_Unidentified Asiatic woman of approximately sixteen years of age._

"Please…help…" a voice whispered in broken English, chopping off rather fast. The people in the room shot a worried glance at one another. 

"IRIS, display main gate security monitor on the television," Race ordered. The picture they saw made their blood run cold, and Jonny and Jessie were out the front door before anyone could say anything. 

"IRIS, open main gate," Dr. Quest said, him, Race, and Hadji following the lead of the two others. Before he left the room, Dr. Quest shot a last, worried glance at the girl that hung half out of the car window, obviously unconscious. 


End file.
